Pain Management

WEDNESDAY, April 10, 2019 -- Because of the danger of "serious harm" to patients, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is advising doctors not to suddenly stop patients from taking opioid painkillers, or drastically lower the dose.

In a statement released Tuesday, the agency said it is adding a warning about sudden discontinuation of use to the prescribing information of opioid painkillers such as OxyContin (oxycodone), Vicodin (hydrocodone), morphine and other drugs.

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 27, 2019 -- Teens and young adults haven't been spared from the opioid addiction crisis sweeping through America.

And new research shows that when a teen is prescribed an opioid painkiller after minor surgery, his or her odds for long-term abuse nearly doubles if someone living at home already has an opioid use problem.

TUESDAY, Feb. 5, 2019 -- Easing chronic pain is the main reason Americans use medical marijuana, a new study finds.

"We wanted to understand the reasons why people are using cannabis medically, and whether those reasons for use are evidence-based," said lead author Kevin Boehnke. He's an investigator at University of Michigan's Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center.